NORDION INC. $7.73 - Toronto symbol NDN

NORDION INC. $7.73 (Toronto symbol NDN; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 61.9 million; Market cap: $478.5 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.0; Dividend suspended in September 2012; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; www.nordion.com) is selling its Targeted Therapies division to U.K.-based BTG plc. This business makes TheraSphere, a process that Nordion developed for treating liver cancer using millions of small glass beads that contain radioactive materials.

Nordion will receive $185 million for Targeted Therapies (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars). In addition, the company will continue to make TheraSphere on BTG’s behalf for three years after the sale closes in June 2013. BTG has an option to extend this arrangement for two more years.

Without unusual items (but including the Targeted Therapies division), Nordion lost $1.8 million, or $0.03 a share, in the three months ended April 30, 2013. A year ago, it earned $4.8 million, or $0.08 a share. Revenue rose 12.1%, to $56.1 million from $50.0 million. That was mainly due to the favourable timing of sales of equipment for sterilizing food and surgical tools.

Nordion is still a hold.

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